[Defcon 16] Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

[Kingpin]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

I'm a tad bit disappointed that our efforts to reverse engineer the bootloader USB protocol, write a Linux software for flashing firmware via USB, and beat sdcc into compiling software for the target, giving a 100% non-Windows, non-CodeWarrior development solution, didn't even result in an honorable mention at the Ceremony.

Sorry! There were lots of things I wanted to mention at the Closing Ceremonies, but just didn't have the time. However, your work is mentioned here (even though I forgot your names):

https://www.defcon.org/html/defcon-1...t-results.html

Joe

[kajer]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

It might just be me, but I wouldn't consider solving the puzzle actual badge hacking. The same numbers could be found on the defcon handout... I would consider badge hacking as simple as changing th code on the micro controller to be locked into continuous goatse transmission to soldering a tapehead and speaker to you badge so you can pass audio tape... Basically using any part of you badge to yield increased functionality. I would not consider zip-tying something to you badge as actual hacking... But thats just me

[SecretIdentity]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

The numbers under the USB connector were used TWICE, for two different things- and note they were used in two different ways as well.

Let me know if you still don't get the hidden website.

1057

That is a pretty big hint for this stage. Assuming people get this stage, how long will it take for them to get the next stage?

Update:
I am still looking on google to see if anyone has published the answers and a walk through. Having completed these puzzles, I know the answer, so asking google about what can be found in the answer should give me hits to pages that have a walk-through, if they link to the answer. So far, none have been published! Awesome! It is really cool to see people keeping this a secret. :-)

I will abide by Chris' request to not publish the answer(s) and a walk-through, so the puzzles can be saved for other people to solve.

If you have solved it, could you post a follow-up message here, to let other people know that you've done it?

[LosT]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

The numbers under the USB connector were used TWICE, for two different things- and note they were used in two different ways as well.

Let me know if you still don't get the hidden website.

1057

[YenTheFirst]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

Besides, if the badge hacking is going to be a black badge event, it shouldn't be too easy.

True, but there is a difference between having to do some surface mount soldering, and having to solder wires directly to a SMB chip with maybe .25mm spacing between pins.

The difficult bit is coming up with a truly original idea for the badge, and figuring out how to implement it. While soldering is certainly a useful skill to have, excluding people from even being possible contenders in the contest, due to lack of previous experience or fine motor skills, seems to miss the point a bit. I know there's amazing hackers out there, but learning to micro-solder doesn't happen in 24 hours, in my opinion.

As much as I would like to see a micro-controller with extra slober pads, I have to agree with Joe too. The USB port caused enough of a traffic jam in the HHV. I also have my reservations about how n00bs were taught to slober the USB port. IMHO you shouldn't need anything but some flux, resin-core solder, and a wet sponge... NO WICK... Don't solder pins together that you don't want soldered together... I could go on all day.

Most of that traffic jam was due to people needing multiple attempts to actually get the USB port working. ah well.

There is an US Bee on a badge at https://www.defcon.org/OO0

The USB port on the real DEFCON badge has two numbers:

10000100001 binary == 1057 decimal == LosT in leet
1024 DECimal ADDed to 21 hex == 1057 == LosT in leet

Beyond that, I'm "lost."

I thought I remember kingpin saying something at the closing ceremonies about there being an additional hidden site, given clues from the OO0 site, but I'm completely lost in that direction. The only clue I can find is the SUM clue, which was apparently part of the mystery challenge. Did I just mishear?

edit:
just found the other thread. still banging my head on oo0, though. :(

[kajer]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

...but there is a difference between having to do some surface mount soldering, and having to solder wires directly to a SMB chip with maybe .25mm spacing between pins.

I know about cpu soldering. Never modify radios while a bit loaded... I took out a perfectly good trace on my yaesu FTM-10R while trying to remove a resistor. I fixed it by soldering 30ga wirewrap wire directly to the pin of the CPU and again to where ever that trace went. Soldering one wire to the CPU with a radioshack iron was hard enough, let alone multiple wires, even worse if they were next to each other...

(about the radioshack iron, my weller blew up and it was an emergency, i couldn't let a $300 radio sit there after drunken damage)

But, I could tell you right now, that solder blob idea still pisses me off...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

What about badge kits / assembled badges?

As in, the people who want to have a badge and forget about it can register like always, but open up a forum so some of us can request out badge in a non-assembled form, and we can put it together ourselves. That way if we want to solder a few wires from the cpu pads, we can do that before the cpu goes down, either that or we can solder a socket on, so we can solder to the socket pins, and not the micro controller.

I dunno, It sounds neat to me.

[krux]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

As much as I would like to see a micro-controller with extra slober pads, I have to agree with Joe too. The USB port caused enough of a traffic jam in the HHV. I also have my reservations about how n00bs were taught to slober the USB port. IMHO you shouldn't need anything but some flux, resin-core solder, and a wet sponge... NO WICK... Don't solder pins together that you don't want soldered together... I could go on all day.

That's generally the method I use as well.

Besides, if the badge hacking is going to be a black badge event, it shouldn't be too easy.

True, but there is a difference between having to do some surface mount soldering, and having to solder wires directly to a SMB chip with maybe .25mm spacing between pins.

[FlyBoy2]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

Who won the Badge Hacking Contest?

Could we see pictures and their code?

Anyone live in the SFO Bay Area want to get together for some post DEFCON badge hacking?

[kajer]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

Maybe next year, but it's a fine line between adding lots of extra functionality and test points versus keeping the design slick and clean for the majority of people who are just going to wear the badge and not mess with it. I've had a lot of people come up to me this year and ask for test points to make it easier to solder onto the pins. I personally think making it so easy for people to mess with it ruins the fun, but I'll consider it for next year :)

Joe

As much as I would like to see a micro-controller with extra slober pads, I have to agree with Joe too. The USB port caused enough of a traffic jam in the HHV. I also have my reservations about how n00bs were taught to slober the USB port. IMHO you shouldn't need anything but some flux, resin-core solder, and a wet sponge... NO WICK... Don't solder pins together that you don't want soldered together... I could go on all day.

Besides, if the badge hacking is going to be a black badge event, it shouldn't be too easy.

I think the best thing this year was having the badge specs released a few days early. That way, the few lot of us that really want to do some serious hacking can stock up on parts from HSC and not have to bring the whole kit...

<pipe dream="1">
Too bad some of us bay area folk can't get HSC to bring a nice supply up to the vendor area... </pipe>

[Kingpin]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

Are you using the actual data logger/USB-to-SD Card demo hardware from Freescale? The code may execute on the DC16 badge with minimal modification, but there's no temperature sensor on-board so the A/D would just read in nothing.

Joe

I tried the data logger firmware that freescale provides as a demo and was surprised that the temperature sensor returned a constant value. Does it require any extra components ? From the data sheet it looks like it is built in and should work out of the box.

[Kingpin]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

Maybe next year, but it's a fine line between adding lots of extra functionality and test points versus keeping the design slick and clean for the majority of people who are just going to wear the badge and not mess with it. I've had a lot of people come up to me this year and ask for test points to make it easier to solder onto the pins. I personally think making it so easy for people to mess with it ruins the fun, but I'll consider it for next year :)

Joe

Yea, noticed that as well. It would have been nice if there were some traces that ran to some pads we could easily solder to.

[Kingpin]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

If people are going to replace the standard IR LED with a higher brightness or higher power LED, I'd highly recommend keeping a current-limiting resistor in line and not just jumping the resistor. It might work for a while, but you may be exceeding the maximum output current of the port pin and/or damaging the IR LED. If your IR LED is emitting a visible red color, that's not ideal.

Joe

Yeah i saw the same thing. I am thinking it could burn it out after awhile.

[BonzoESC]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

Yeah i saw the same thing. I am thinking it could burn it out after awhile.

I'd be more concerned about battery life. If it burns out, its easy enough to replace with something bigger and clunkier :) Before we messed with the resistor Critta tried about three different LEDs in his (don't tell the Riv)

[krux]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

The downside to the DC16 badge is most of the CPU pins are unused...

And if you did develop code that would take advantage of extra pins on the CPU, you'd have to micro slober some wirewrap wire directly to the cpu...

Going the way of a dev kit or basic stamp is the way to go if your starting out.

I was thinking about adding a few extra features to the DC16 badge of mine, but right now it looks like i have to slober from the LED2-7 because those are PWM outputs, and I wouldn't have to wire off the CPU.... plus I dont have a iron w/ a tip that small or eyes that can see that small

Yea, noticed that as well. It would have been nice if there were some traces that ran to some pads we could easily solder to.

[SmittyHalibut]

Re: Welcome to the DEFCON Badge Hacking Contest

The "21ADDDEC1024" was also part of the Mystery Challenge. We had to add all the digits in that string, which is 55 in hex (a palindrome), and 1010101 in binary (also a palindrome). The 1010101 was the key to the next stage in the challenge.

...that guy has some serious numerology in his handle, it's crazy.